The Time Alchemist
by Nocturnalwhitewolf
Summary: A new threat emerges at central. An alchemist known as the Time Alchemist and his homunculus wife give the world's heroes clues to survival from having their planet into a time-space continuam to satisfy his god! Will Ed and Al beat him at his own game?
1. The Dream

"_So my love…" Said a soft, moving male voice. "Where shall we go now?" It was as if the voice echoed in this white abyss._

"_Anywhere but here…" Said a lustful female voice. "The portal bores me." _

"_Of course my love." He laughs. His accent is… mysterious. Like he is from a time and place unknown. "Then we shall let the keeper decide!" Though without a physical form, a grin could be felt in the portal's presence. "Keeper!" He yells. "Show us the way! What path shall we venture, O great one?"_

_A sitting body, similar to a child's body but lacking any features, shows itself. A black spatter pattern reveals its shape, as it is the same color as the portal's canvas. The only feature present on the sexless body was a mouth, grinning widely. "My child." It's voice was the voice of a great crowd, perhaps one of mostly children, due it's high pitch. _

"_Show us the way, oh god!" The man's voice pleaded. "We shall commit thine will!"_

"_You're objective." The featureless form bellowed. "Is as before…" _

_There is a long silence, one that doesn't seem to wane. The silence was deafening, especially to the man and woman who waited for their answer. _

"_Destroy it!" The 'god' laughed. "Destroy it! Destroy it! Destroy it!" He chanted._

"_Yes…" The woman's breath heavy voice said. "We shall go…"_

"_It shall be done milord!" The man screams. "May another world fall to it's knees! May another world come to you and be yours! May we serve you well, oh One, oh You, oh I, oh god! May we live up to each of you're names!"_

"_AHAHAHAHA__!" The bellowing laugh was the last melody the two heard before their presence had left._

* * *

Edward Elric nearly jumped out of his bed. It was exactly three o'clock am, so said the clock by his bed. Alphonse was sitting against the wall, eyes now on his panting and wide-eyed brother. "Weird dream?" Alphonse asked genuinely.

"Yeah, you could say that." Edward relaxed his posture and took a breath.

"What about?" Alphonse asked.

"The portal I think." He sighed wearily. "Not only does it take up our daily hours, now it's in my dreams, too." Edward whined.

"Well, that's what you get for eating chips before bed." Alphonse said, gesturing to the bag of potato chips by Ed's bed.

"Shaddup!" Edward lies back down, with his eyes closed. "We've been hunting day and night for the philosopher stone for years so we can get our bodies back from… where?" Ed peered at Alphonse. "The portal. It's only predictable for me to dream about it every now and then." Ed turned over on his side, pulling the covers up onto him comfortably.

"The chips probably didn't help, though." Alphonse blurted out.

"Oh, stop it with the damned chips!" Ed yelled.

"Oh keep quiet down there!" Pinako yelled. "And go to sleep! It's the middle of the night!"

"Sorry Granny Pinako!" Alphonse yelled back before Ed could retaliate. Edward just closed his eyes to go to sleep. "Oh, Ed?" Alphonse said sharply.

"I gotta sleep Al, make it quick." Ed grumbled.

"Just wanted to let you know that some officer's at central came by."

"What for?" Ed said into his pillow.

"They want you to stop by central command first thing tomorrow morning." Alphonse looked toward the door. "They said it was important."

"They'll have to wait." Edward mumbled. "I don't plan on waking up anytime before noon."

"Do you plan on Winry permanently inserting a wrench in your head?" Al retorted with a giggle in the back of his throat.

Ed looked up, the image going through his mind. He cringed a little. "Wake me up around nine then."

Alphonse chuckled under his breath. "Sure thing, Ed." Edward then pulled the covers over him tighter and went off to sleep. Al decided to walk around Resembool until sunrise. He lacked the ability to sleep, so there was no point in him staying put in Ed's room.

* * *

Ed walked blearily out of his room and in to the kitchen. The sun shone as bright as it ever had, and the fair weather seemed to fit perfectly with the cozy country kitchen. Pinako was making breakfast for him and Winry. "Good morning Edward." Pinako said.

"Good morning Granny." Ed and Al said in unison. Ed sat down at the kitchen table. It was a small kitchen, but it had a very home-like feel. "What are you making?"

"Pancakes." She said, not moving from her work. "Good for a… slowly… growing boy as yourself."

"Well you're one to talk, ya tiny old hag!" Ed yelled. And so it begins…

"What did you call me, micro chibi-chan!" She yelled back.

"You heard me ya little prune!"

"Shrimp!" She yelled.

"Hey, I'm still growing ya half-pint witch!" Ed continued.

Winry walked into the room, tired eyed and groggy. "G'morning granny. G'morning Ed." She said with half opened eyes. She sat down at the table, massaging the back of her neck.

"Good morning, Winry." Pinako said, the fumes of the tussle with Ed completely without recognition. "How did you sleep?"

Winry looked up at Pinako, eyes drooping. "Not too well, I've had better nights." She turned forefront as Pinako set down the pancakes in front of her and Ed.

"Why, dear? Just couldn't keep your eyes shut?" She asked with a genuine concern. The two teenagers began eating their meal, Ed stuffing his face, while Winry ate slowly. Pinako handed the two their milk.

"No milk for me, Granny." Ed said. "I'll have water."

"Ed, come on." Winry sighed with food in her mouth. "You'll stay short forever if you don't drink you're milk."

Ed's jaw tightened. "And you'll stay single forever if you keep talking with you're mouth full."

Winry swallowed her food. "Whatever, I'm too tired to do this now." She rolled her eyes and continued on her food.

Pinako sat down with the two. "Why didn't you sleep well, Winry?" Pinako folded her arms on the table while looking deeply at Winry.

Winry sighed. "It's nothing," She said, finishing her pancakes. She got up to go wash her dish. "Just a weird dream, is all. It sort of woke me up in the middle of the night." The running water ever the dish was the only sound in the room for a small while.

Ed smiled looking at Alphonse. "I told you it wasn't the chips!" He satisfactorily watched his brother sigh, then looked at Pinako with a playful grin. "I think granny put something _extra _in that stew last night." He laughed.

Pinako sat back in her chair with her arms folded and her eyes closed, fiddling with the pipe in her mouth. "Maybe the milk went sour."

"AH HA!" Ed cheered. "I knew that cow excretion was no good!" He sat back in his chair, full of self pride.

"I'll see to it that we get some more in the afternoon." She said, watching Ed slump, defeated in his chair again.

"Well…" Al interjected. "Shouldn't we get going, Ed. We have to meet Colonel Mustang in central, remember?"

Ed stood up from his chair, smiling at Al. "He can wait." He said.

Al sighed. "But they said it was important, Ed." Al urged him. "I dislike the colonel just as much as you do, but what if it's an emergency?"

"If it was an emergency, we'd see the smoke from here." Ed retorted. Al was plainly unamused as he glared at Ed. The small blond haired boy sighed tensely. "We'll catch the noon train" He said hesitantly, leaving the table to get dressed.

"Leaving so suddenly?" Pinako said. "You only arrived three days ago." She sipped her tea, looking catatonically as she spoke.

"Yeah, three days too long if you ask me." He stretched, still maintaining that cocky smile. "The countryside's too simple… nothing to do around here." He started off to his room. "Thanks for fixing my automail, by the way." He closed the door to his room.

"Any time." Pinako said softly. She turned to Alphonse, who was standing in the corner of the room. His shining metal avatar had been freshly polished, so it took in the sunlight almost causing him to glow. "So…" Pinako began in her gravely voice. "Off to another crisis?"

"Well, not per say." Alphonse said. "But we do have to go down to central pretty soon."

Pinako sighed wearily. "You two boys are always headed off into some danger or another." She rolled her pipe in her lips. "That would worry most people."

"We won't stop until we get out bodies back." Al said in defense. "Any danger we put ourselves in is necessary for our cause."

Pinako closed her eyes with a small grin on her face. "I know." She said lightly. "Just be careful out there. There are people who care about you, ya know."

"Will do, granny." Alphonse started toward the door. "I'll wait outside for Ed." He went out side, leaving Pinako and Winry to each other.

"Can't they ever just stay in one place at a time?" Winry leaned back on the kitchen counter. "You know, settle down and relax for once?"

Pinako got up (or down rather) from her chair. "You know that will never happen." She said, looking at Winry. "Not until they get their bodies back."

Winry frowned, as if she was thinking over the scenario. "But what if that never happens?"

Pinako folded her arms a Winry, annoyed at that statement. "They don't have time for 'what ifs' and doubts. They'll spend their whole lives searching. Even if the solution isn't attainable, they won't ever give up. No, they are far too stubborn for that." She looks out the window toward Alphonse. "Besides, they can't live normal lives the way they are now. Alphonse can't eat, sleep, smell, taste… The only thing he has is a soul and a suit of armor. How could he ever attract a nice woman if he's stuck in a body that isn't even human." She sighs. "He's strong, but even the strongest souls can crack… I worry for him."

Winry tightens her jaw, embarrassed at her question. "You're right, I'm sorry I said anything." Her voice is soft. "It's just hard to see them always fighting, always struggling."

"I know, Winry." Pinako said, still staring out the window. "But it's all a necessary sacrifice. Equivalent exchange, if you will…"

* * *

Ed boarded the train to central at noon. There to see him off were Winry and Pinako. The station was relatively sparse, with only a few people present. The brownish station seemed all too monochromatic, like a painter had run out paint and only had tan. The sky was still blue, and the clouds still white, so it was at least somewhat contrasting.

"Bye, boys!" Pinako yelled over the engine as the train had just started. "Come back anytime, our doors our always open."

"But don't mess up my automail this time!" Winry shouted as the train began to exit the station. "Or you'll beg for me to beat you over the head with a wrench!" She laughed evilly at the thought of seeing Ed in so much pain that he would plead for the wrench over her torment.

The train left the station with Ed and Al on board. The inside was elegant, with redwood walls and a crimson carpeting. Brass candles jutted out of the walls as decorations, and the windows had blood red curtains at their sides. It was as if this were a train for a king… or at least someone with enough money to claim he was one.

"So," Ed began, sitting across from Alphonse with his head resting on his hand. He was leaning on the windowsill. "Did Mustang's minions say what we were coming for?"

"No." Alphonse said shortly. "Only that it was urgent."

"Do you think they have a lead for us?" Ed looked away from the window at his brother.

"Maybe…" Alphonse said, as if the thought hadn't occurred to him. "But it might also be something else. Like something might have happened in central." Alphonse looked down, thinking over what the two had said. "I think it's more likely that something happened, but Roy Mustang isn't one to ask for our help."

"Yeah." Ed grinned. "The cocky bastard would probably die fighting alone before asking for reinforcements. But I guess we'll find out when we get there, right?" Ed's golden eyes moved back to the farmland background that passed by them so quickly.

Alphonse looked outside as well. "Right." He said quietly.

* * *

This uploaded poorly, and I had to change some things like words that didn't apear and periods that spontainiously occured, so if you see any grammatical errors, spelling errors, etc, please leave a comment and tell me so I can fix it. Anyway, this is my first fanfic for Fullmetal Alchemist, and I'm sort of testing out the waters here. Please tell me if you like it so far, even though it's only the first chapter. Comments are always apreciated, whether they are critiques or compliments. It also let's me know that people are reading. Thank you for reading and i hope you look forward to the next chapter.


	2. A Message Coded in the Blood

The heavy downpour had washed the streets clean of pedestrians and civilian automobiles. The booming thunder and flashing lightning were an adequate display of how dark and angry central seemed at this time. But anger is often caused by confusion, and confusion is a very dangerous thing.

"Colonel Mustang." A blond, large eyed woman said. Her pale skin and light hair went well together, and her posture was fitting for her blue military uniform. She was of average height, maybe a little taller.

"Yes Lieutenant Hawkeye." A deep, but smooth voice returned. The man was wearing a similar uniform, but his features couldn't have been more different. His jet black hair and eyes gave him a boyish look, though a full grown man. His thunderous voice would certainly clarify that if any confusion was to occur. His posture wasn't quite as good as his subordinate's, but perhaps not far from it.

"The Elric brothers are here." She says robotically, not a hair moving from her militaristic form.

Colonel Mustang sat at his desk, put loosely by the large five by ten foot window. The office was decorated massively, as though to fit some type of ruler, or maybe someone who had such intentions. "Send them in." He said quietly.

Ed and Alphonse sat on the wooden bench outside Mustang's office. Ed had his arms folded and his head down, the thought of what he'd just done racing through his mind. "You realize…" He said to his brother sitting next to him. "He'll think were being subordinate. We leaped like house pets to an owner's call…" He looks up at Alphonse. "If he takes this seriously, it's your fault." He spews.

"The colonel will see you know." Hawkeye said, peeking her head out of the office.

Ed sneered. "So when did you become the office secretary?"

Hawkeye half closed her eyelids at Ed. "I was picking up some paperwork, and happened to see you enter." She drew her gun, showing Ed, who was now paling a bit. "Besides, I get the pleasure of telling you what to do. Now get in." She ordered.

"What's the gun for?" Ed panicked.

"Just get in." She said coldly. She held the door for them as they entered, then she went off.

Colonel Mustang looked up at the two boys, hesitantly walking into his office. "Glad to see you could make it on such short notice, Fullmetal." He said with his eyes closed." How was your stay in Resembool?" He asked politely.

"Save the formalities, colonel." Ed sighed angrily. "Do you have a lead on the philosopher's stone, or not?"

"Brother…" Alphonse pleaded for Ed's courtesy.

Mustang smiled inwardly. "You sure do get right to the point…" He said through gritted teeth and a false smile. He sighed. "Yes, that was what I called you in for."

Ed smiled. "Then let's make this short and sweet." Ed said demandingly. "Were is it and when can we leave."

"Something came up though…" He said quickly, but loudly. There was a silence on both halves of the conversation, mostly due to Ed's disappointment. "I want to ask you something, Fullmetal, and I want you to handle it maturely and respectfully.

"Why would I answer any of your questions?" Ed yelled at him angrily.

"If you answer my questions, it will prove useful to your investigation." Mustang said, an obvious frustration from taking the attitude from someone so much younger and inferiorly positioned as Ed.

Ed plopped down on the seats in his office, distrusting every word Mustang said. "What choice do I have?" He waved his arm in the air.

"Excellent." Mustang growled. "Now I want you to take this as a serious matter, not as a joke or game, understood?"

Ed sighed with his jaw tight. "I can handle a question or two, pops, now on with it!" He grunted.

"Very well." Mustang said plainly. "Have you had any bizarre dreams lately?"

It was silent for a while, like the question would go unanswered. Mustang watched Ed carefully trying to pick up his nonexistent, sound lacking body motions. Then a smile appeared on Edward's face. "BWWAAHAHAHAHAHAH!" He burst out in laughter at the colonel's comment, going as far as to point and double over.

"So much for maturity." Mustang sighed, slumping in his chair.

"AHAHAHAHAHAH…AHAHA…" Ed continued laughing at the thought. Mustang… asking about his dreams. They hated each other, since when did he become a psychologist?

"Alright that's enough!" Mustang yelled over Edward's unstoppable laughter.

"AHAHaHAhahahahah…"Ed's bellowing finally simmered down to a mere chuckle. "You're seriously asking about my dreams? Trying to connect with us at long last?" He chuckled.

"No." Mustang answered seriously. "And we don't have time for your little games right now. Answer the question, or face military revocation of your Alchemy license."

Revocation; not a word used easily. If Mustang was threatening with this, either somebody peed in his cheerios, or this was a very serious matter. Ed sat back down with a strange grin on his face. "Is this some sort of psychological evaluation, Mustang?"

"No." He said plainly.

Ed sighed. "No I can't necessarily say I've had any abnormal dreaming."

The colonel sat back in his chair. "That means that it was only present in central." He murmured.

"What are you talking about?" Alphonse asked, leaning forward.

The colonel hesitated, looking around his palace of an office. He let out a heavy sigh. "This is going to sound strange Edward, so brace yourselves." He closed his eyes, leaning forward. "There's a reason that the streets were clear tonight. We're on civilian lockdown."

"Why?" Ed asked, suddenly interested. "Is it Scar?"

"No." He said, almost sadly. "Everyone in central shared a dream last night, all at the exact same time." He rested his chin on his gloved palms, knowing that what he was saying sounded completely unbelievable. "It was something to with a white abyss, and a man and woman talking to a figure… they called him god."

Ed froze. _No, it's impossible…_ he thought. "Oh one, oh you, oh I, oh god…" Ed recalled his dream.

Mustang gasped. "So it wasn't limited to central." He concluded. "You woke up at three, correct." His deep voice sounded as frantic as it was able.

Ed couldn't believe what was happening. "I thought it was just another dream about the portal…" He whispered meekly. Ed thought back… "Yes, was exactly three o'clock." He said in disbelief.

Mustang tightened his jaw, watching Ed and Alphonse panic. He sighs angrily. "That means we have no way of knowing where he is. If you didn't have a dream, then we have him in central. If you would've said a time before or after three, at least then we'd have a general idea of where the message was coming." He closed his frowning eyes to think.

"I know its scary…" Alphonse said, the colonel looking up to him. "But if it was a shared dream, then why is it such a crisis?" Alphonse' question was well placed, causing all eyes to converge on the colonel.

"Yeah, he's right." Ed thought aloud. "You wouldn't institute a civilian lockdown because you got spooked. What aren't you telling us?"

The colonel looked directly forward, not making eye contact with anyone. "There were some civilian casualties, one's that go outside the norm by too much too overlook." He glared at a paper on his desk, angry still that the culprit left no trace. "Nine-hundred and sixty-six civilians, seven military officers…" He red off coldly. "All killed themselves."

Ed's eyes widened. "One thousand and three people… mass suicide?" He whispered to himself, shocked at this discovery. He could feel a sweat forming on his brow, and his pupils shrank themselves to near disappearance.

"Yes…" He said, knowing how strange this was. "But I doubt they were willing…and they all died at the very edges of the city… It had to be mass _murder_ of some kind, maybe a toxin spread by an instigating country. All I know is that it was extremely systematic, but it's a system that we can't seem to figure out the significance of." He said, closing his eyes again, shuffling his papers.. "Sixteen in the Northern sector, the south suffered the greatest with six hundred and twenty-five casualties, and three hundred and twenty-four in the west." He looked at paper to see if any were forgotten. "There was also one incident in the eastern edge of central, which was marked down just in case. The military personnel died of gunshot wounds to the head at exactly three o'clock, and the civilians started falling at three eleven exactly."

Ed shuffled his weight from leg to leg a few times, trying to figure out an explanation. He attempted to regain his normal cockiness, failing miserably. "Are you telling me to look out for the suicide phantom?" He says, fear justifying his movements.

"Well, yes." Mustang said. "But I also know that cracking codes is something you do well. On the military IQ testing, you scored perfectly in that section." He fumbles his papers. "You also scored highly over all, with a one hundred fifty three IQ… far beyond the capabilities of our smartest soldiers." He tried to act humble, but it was a frustrating thing. Given the situation, though, what choice did he have? He handed Edward the paperwork. "Get started on the code. You should also know that the military personnel who died wrote notes first. The content is on the sheet." Mustang's words fell on deaf ears, as Ed and Alphonse had already begun analyzing the information. He watched them for a while. "Anything pop out right away, or should I leave you to it?"

Ed smirked in spite of the situation. "The civilians who died, they died in sectors according to this."

"Yes." Mustang replied.

"Well, the numbers were 16, 625, 361, and 1." He put his hand to his chin as he thought. "Those are all perfect squares… the numbers being…" He thought for a while. "…Four, twenty-five… nineteen, and one." Ed looked back to the notes, eyes studying it violently. "There's a significance there…but the seven officers died in no particular way, correct."

"Well, they had ID numbers, if that's of any use." Mustang started thinking. "The numbers are listed next to their names."

Ed looked down, reading aloud. "Jason Olive ID: 151-064-109; Susan Lemon ID: 122-025-212; Evan Tonto ID: 203-400-306; Sara Amado ID: 014-001-401; Samuel Falmen ID: 205-121-506; Paul Lori ID: 126-025-612; and Sheila Impreza ID: 097-361-715..." He studies the paper closely, then looks to Mustang. "Unless Al's got something, we're going to be at this one for a while."

"Yeah." Alphonse agreed, looking up from his seated position.

"You're sure you two can handle it?" He said genuinely. "I can send a team down to help you."

"Thanks, but no thanks, Roy." He said nonchalantly. "We work best alone, right Al."

"Right." Al agreed. "A team would probably just slow us down." they two robotically went back to their work, determined to find that mysterious encryption lurking in the list.

"Well, alright. I'm sending Sheska a copy to see if she finds anything." Roy smiles weakly. "I think you boys could use a bit of competition."

"No competition there, right Al?" he said as Al nodded. "We'll get this in no time."

"Well, if you say so, Fullmetal" He begins to walk off. "The quicker we get this done, the quicker the people of central can sleep in peace…"

* * *

Yay, I made out another chapter! Can you crack the code before the next chapter comes out? Please comment with what you think, or the normal critique/ compliment thingamajig. Thanks for reading, and putting up with the numbers and codes. The action starts soon, just warning you! Thank you for reading and **PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE COMMENT! Thank you!**


	3. The First Decryption

Colonel Mustang sat slumped on the bench in the cafeteria. A boiling cup of coal black coffee rested in his in his lap, supported by his hand. His black eyes struggled to stay half open as the nightly office slowly turned orange with the sunrise.

It was far too quiet for a weekday, much less a Monday. Roy sat alone in the entire building it seemed, aside from the guards that stood at each door, and of course the Elric brothers and Sheska working on the code. Yesterday's wee morning tragedy had left quite a resounding mark on the whole city, especially the people trying to piece it all together. Roy looked toward the hallways, away from the nearby entrance.

There was a small bang toward the entrance. Roy instinctively drew his gun to the entrance! Standing there was Lieutenant Hawkeye, staring a curious eye at the colonel. "Not much sleep?" she said, heading over to the clock to check in.

Roy lowered his gun with a sigh, then put it away. "Not a wink" he grumbled.

Riza Hawkeye walked over to him. "I think the rest of the town can say the same." She stood casually, an unusual motion for her. "Maybe we should check on Ed and Sheska? If they had any luck with the code, it could be one less thing on your mind." She offered her hand to help up the colonel.

Using Riza, he got up. "Or one more thing, depending on what they decipher." he and Riza begin to walk to the stairs. The hallways are somewhat unattractive without people in them. The beige-yellow walls and wood molding seemed so lifeless, like an untouched canvas.

"What do you think we're up against?" Roy seriously asked as they began up the stairs.

"I wouldn't know." Riza stared off a bit, a frown declaring her frustration. "If it has to do with dream… my assumption is that we're up against the speaker…" She thought hard. "But why would he give us a code… one that likely tells us some key information. Could it be a terrorist negotiation for our lives?"

They began toward the door that lead to Ed and Alphonse, then stopped by it. "Maybe we're about to find out." Roy said, opening the door.

The two lay splayed on the floor, papers scattered everywhere. Ed was asleep, a steamless coffee cup to his side, while Al was just… down.

"Uh… boys?" Riza said. It was just loud enough to wake Ed and get Alphonse' attention. "Any luck?"

They both sat up. "Whoever this guy is…" Edward grunted groggily. "I hate him. I just hate him…" He yawned and picked up some papers. "Put the names in alphabetical order and look at the first two numbers in the ID; 15-12-20-1-6-12-9..." He cracked his neck and adjusted his automail. "At first, we didn't think anything of it, but then we read the last two digits of each ID; 9-12-6-1-20-12-15... The same numbers, just in opposite order."

"So…" Roy thought it through. "You're saying it's not a coincidence?"

"I'm getting to that, gimme a minute." He abruptly picked up a sheet of scrap paper he used. It was terribly crumbled and ink soaked. "We put that on hold, and later discovered something about the last names." He pointed to Alphonse, laying back down.

Alphonse fumbled through his papers quickly, then found another scrap sheet. "The first letter of the each last name correlated to each ID number's first two numbers, regarding their position in the alphabet. A to 1, F to 6, I to 9, L to 12 and so on." He switched papers with his sleeping brother. "Using this 'numbers to letters' theorem, we used Ed's original conclusion about the perfect squares in the Ids."

Roy's eyes gave away that he wasn't following well. "Okay…" He said through a whirling head. "Go on"

"The second triad in each ID was a perfect square, so applying the square roots lead us to the letters A, K, S, two Es, H, and T while still in name order. Then the left over numbers were sets of 1,2,3,4,5,6,and 7." He looked at his paper, trying to shorten his work. "We put the IDs in numerical order according to those and we got a message." Alphonse looks up to the two. "It spelled 'He takes'"

Roy sipped his coffee wearily. "Well, that doesn't seem very useful. We don't even know who this 'he' is."

"There's more, grandpa." Edward retorts as he picks up his paper from his lying down position. "After we saw a phrase, we played word scramble with the last initials/ first and last binomials. We found the rest of the sentence." Edward tosses his paper to the side. "O, L, T, A, F, L, I rearranged spells out 'All of it', therefore the whole sentence is 'He takes all of it'".

Roy grits his teeth. "That accomplishes nothing." He growls. "We still don't know who 'he' is and what it is he's taking all of."

"Really?" Edward stands facing the colonel, angry eyed. "You can't be that stupid! Don't you remember the dream?"

Roy goes over it in his head. Then the quote pops into place, _Oh he, oh you, oh I, oh god… _"So we're dealing with God?" He sighs into his hand.

"That's what it implies." Alphonse states, still sitting. "And the message was written out of people that died, so its likely that 'all of it' implies all human life… or mass suicide"

"Genocide, too." Edward said looking back at Alphonse. It was obviously a frightening message, but Ed looked only tired.

"And there's another piece to the code." Sheska interrupted. They all turned back to her, and she cowered into herself. "I'm sorry I should've knocked…"

"No, it's okay." Riza said softly to her. "What do you have to say?"

She walked into the room a little further, hands neatly folded at her front. "The places where the suicides took place have a code too."

"Yeah, I almost forgot to mention that." Edward said into himself. He didn't seem cocky right now, more humble than anything. It was that 'bad news bringer' look, a hurt, angry, almost bashful face. "Using the same formula, the deaths convert to letters too. When you go clockwise on the cardinal directions, you get the word 'days'"

"And there were seven casualties inside the base." Sheska looks down. "So then the entire message is…"

Roy Mustang leans against the wall, his eyes closed furiously. "It's worse than we could've possibly feared then…" He said. "He takes it all… 7 days."

Hawkeye frowned. "Well that only leaves us six then, to state the obvious." Her jaw tightened involuntarily. "But why would he send us a message? If it was a warning, he would've given us the facilities to prevent it…"

"Well, lets not jump to any conclusions yet" All eyes went to Alphonse as he spoke. "There's probably more messages to come. He left it unconcluded, so it's only common sense that there's more."

"But he's shown no sign of a second attack, nor another message." Mustang said. "What leads you to believe that?"

As if in response, Sheska jolts into perfect posture, drawing everyone's attention. She just stands still for a moment, as if in shock.

"Sheska?" Hawkeye says cautiously. "Sheska are you alright?"

Sheska walks over to Edward, leaning over to match his seated height. Mustang blushed at the perfect view of Sheska's ass in his line of sight. She looked at Edward barrenly. "I need to see your Alchemy handbook." Her voice is different, as if each word was a sigh with heavy breath.

Edward looked suspiciously at her. "Why?" he asked, eyes studying her.

"It'll help with the case…" she sounded unusually confident.

Ed hesitated, but then reached into his pocket. "Whatever" he said handing her the notebook.

"Good boy…" She smiled, watching Ed's temperament crumble at her statement. She took the notebook over to the nearby desk, sat down and opened it.

"Sheska?" Roy frowned. "We don't have time to waste! If there is a point to this, make it quick." He barked.

Sheska clicked a pen, looking deviously to the colonel. "It'll only take a second…" She turned to a page and put pen to paper.

"Sheska! What are you doing?" Roy yelled as he rushed toward her. Hawkeye held her arm in front of him.

"Wait." She said with bated breath, analyzing the small brunette girl. "Let her continue… Something's not quite right…" She said.

"Damn straight!" Roy yelled. "she's writing all over a government owned document!"

"No." Hawkeye turned in front of him. "There's more going on here, and I think I just put it together. The suicides, mass suicides… that kind of mayhem can only be caused by two things…" Roy gave her a look. "There's cultist mentalities, or…well… mind control."

Roy sighed. "You can't be serious."

"Just think about it sir!" She broke character for a split second. "If I'm wrong, all that happens is Ed needs a new notebook… and if I'm right, then… Ed still needs a new notebook." She shifted her weight. "Let's just see how this all fairs out, okay. Please just let it go around in your mind a little."

"I'm done." Sheska said proudly… then she dropped in her chair, eyes closed and body limp.

"Sheska!" Roy and Hawkeye ran over to help her. Roy felt for a pulse. "She's okay, I think. But we need to get her to a hospital."

Ed walked slowly up to the desk, eyes focused on his notebook. He picked it up. "She crossed off some of the elements in here… a lot of them actually. She left yttrium, oxygen, uranium…she crossed off Erbium and wrote it backwards…"

"Is it more of the code?" Alphonse asked inquisitively.

"Probably, but how could Sheska transfer it?" Ed said.

Roy ordered one of the guards outside to bring Sheska to the hospital. He then turned to the two alchemists. "Well, it's possible I guess… is mind control still an option here, Lieutenant?" He said to Hawkeye. "If so, then definitely, let me see."

Edward handed him the notebook. "Could it be a compound he wants us to find?…or make?"

It only took Roy a second to glance over the page before a smile appeared on his face. "You don't know your elemental symbols, do you?"

Ed frowned. "It isn't important!"

"Hmm." Roy mocked. "It's an elemental code, and an easy one at that. Just write down the elemental symbols, and you get the phrase."

"How do you know that?" Ed retorted. "For all you know it could be a whole different ballgame!"

"Well, for one…" Roy began. "I already did it." He smiled and looked up. "This is by far the easiest code I've ever seen, like he wasn't even trying."

"Well, get to it!" Ed shouted. "Time's ticking!"

Roy frowned, glancing it over again. "'You're running out of time, young alchemist. Cselkcess'…" Roy looks over to him. "'Bring no one' … and it lists the time '8:27pm.'" Roy closes his eyes as he closes the notebook. "They know who you are Edward, and they clearly used only your notebook."

Ed sat down in the chair, dreary eyed and yawning. "So I'm the spokesperson?"

"No, you're the target." Hawkeye interjects. "But we aren't sending you out there unarmed, it's a trap that they took no preventative measures to cover up."

"Just because I'm a little young doesn't mean I can't hold my own!" Ed yelled, eyes starting to close. He slipped off his shoes and laid his head down in his arms.

"But whoever this person is, 'he' also made it clear that we wouldn't have a choice." Roy muttered.

"Was there more to the code?" Alphonse asked.

Roy sighed, stretching his back. "No, but whoever this is, this 'he' has a knack for mind control. He proved that both with Sheska and with the suicides." He said. "We really have no choice but to do what the messages tell us."

"Sir, this is crazy! He's barely fifteen, and has no military weapons training!" Hawkeye yells. "It's a suicide mission at best."

"Think it through Hawkeye!" He barked, getting a bit heated. "If they wanted Edward dead, or any of us for that matter, they wouldn't need us to get close! You know that much. Not to mention, he was trained in weapons defense by Izumi Curtis."

"I still think we should send someone more qualified at negotiations." She argued firmly.

"So we can have them kill us anyway? They want Ed, they'll probably get him no matter what." He sighed out his tension. "I guess it's up to him ultimately, though." He turns to Ed. "Ed, what do you…"

There on the desk lay a sleeping Ed, a soft snore escaping his slightly open mouth.

"You'll have to forgive him…" Alphonse said, looking at his brother. "He was up all night, and the code was frustrating at the very least."

Roy smiled softly, scratching the back of his head. "No I think he has the right idea, actually." He begins to walk off with Hawkeye at his side. "No use in sleep deprivation, might as well catch it when I can." He disappears into the hallway, leaving Al alone with his sleeping brother.

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There was a lot of decrypting and the like in this chapter, I hope it didn't get in the way. I was also half asleep when I wrote it, so if seems aggrivated or rushed, I apologise. I must apologise also because this took forever to get done. With school I've barely had enough time to sleep, much less do anything productive. Ontop of that, my dog needed a major surgery that put his life at risk, and my parents were discussing putting him down for a while, which made me very depressed. He's as good as ever now thank God. I picked him up today from the hospital, so I can finally sleep easy, i.e., write my stories again. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed, and I hope you keep reading. Thank you! Please comment!


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